Howard Lake-Waverly Herald, July 9, 2001

Community theater is back in HL with 'Edwin Drood'

By Lynda Jensen

Once again, a group of talented local players will converge
to perform this summer, two weekends in a row, at the Howard Lake auditorium.

"The Mystery of Edwin Drood," will be performed
Friday and Saturday, July 13 and 14 at 7:30, with a Sunday matinee July
15 at 2 p.m. and again the next weekend, Friday and Saturday, July 20 and
21 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, July 22 at 2 p.m., Metcalf said.

The venture is funded by the Central Minnesota Arts Board,
said Director Dave Metcalf.

The play's setting is Victorian London, Metcalf said.

"There's a lot of music hall, song and dance schtick,"
he said. Victorian plays generally feature one player who is a male impersonator,
which is typical of this time period, Metcalf said. An example of this is
Edwin Drood, who is played by actress Jodi Kyllonen, he said.

Eight different endings for the play

"Edwin Drood" is the first and only murder mystery
play written by Charles Dickens before his death. The play features eight
different endings, with the choice being made by the audience.

The reason for different endings was because Dickens died
two thirds of the way through writing it, Metcalf said.

Dickens never leaked the ending to anyone before his untimely
death, although he did manage to identify suspects in his play, Metcalf
said.

This means that the players must practice eight different
endings - and since the murderer must sing a song of confession, be prepared
to be fingered as the guilty party, ready to sing, Metcalf said.

How did the different endings get into the picture?

Apparently, a popular singer and songwriter by the name
of Rupert Holmes loved to host unusual parties. One party he hosted was
like a mystery-dinner theater style, which featured this play, Metcalf said.

His guests thought it was so wonderful that he should make
something of it - so he did. Holmes wrote a play about Dickens' unfinished
novel that was performed on Broadway.

More than that

That isn't all the audience chooses in Dickens' play. It
also gets to do matchmaking with the men and women in the play, who end
up singing love songs to each other.

In fact, one time that he remembers, the audience dictated
that a brother and sister in the play sing to each other, which they grudgingly
did, Metcalf said.

"The audience may match the blustery grave digger
with a beautiful young woman, or a crusty old madam who operates the local
opium den with the reverend," Metcalf said.

The play incorporates the audience at every turn, Metcalf
said.

This year, the play is the work of several people, including
Metcalf and his wife Linda, as well as Shirley Olson who wrote for the grant,
and Margaret Marketon .